“I do not take it personally. I pray that God forgives those who were trying to make this into a scandal,” said Haj Mahmoud Karimi, the famous religious singer, after reports surfaced that he had fired his pistol in a disagreement following a car accident.
The incident was first reported by the website Ayandeh, which stated that one of the famous religious singers of Tehran, "whose chants are constantly broadcast by national television during the periods of religious mourning, was involved in a car accident on the morning of Dec. 26 on the Babayi Expressway involving a Peugeot 206 vehicle. This accident, which could have been resolved like hundreds of other cases before it by calling the insurance company and giving a description of the accident, instead led to an argument.”